Starting tomatoes indoors from seed

[Michael Wise]

Started my tomatoes today. This is my first experience starting any vegetable from seed.

Super sweet 100 hybrids and big boy hybrids.

I'm using a Burpee seed starting kit.

Here are some pics. I'll update after germination and each big step along the way. This is gonna be fun!

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I have a family business and am able to bring my tomatoes here with me. That'll be easier for me to tend to them. I set up a little growing area in some storage space we aren't using. It's a nice warm temp that I think will be great for this.

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[MorpheusPA]

Adorable! I can't wait to see the photos as things go along! I'll have to take some of my setup as things begin to move along.

Are you using a heating mat for the tomatoes? They like 70-80 degrees to sprout, same as my petunias. The recorded temperature atop the TV is currently 76 (I put a remote sensor in there to check it--it transmits to the temperature sensor sitting on my desktop).

[Michael Wise]

There is a shelf above my mom's work area that has a light mounted underneath. The heat from the light nicely warms the shelf it is mounted to.

I didn't check the temp, but I'd guess it is somewhere in that sweet spot. Convenient. Built in heated shelf. You'd think it was custom made for my little tomato box.

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[Michael Wise]

If you look in the background of the first pic you can see my soil samples drying a bit before I sent them off.

Get ready Beatlawn Soil Whisperers.

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[MorpheusPA]

Cool! In my setup, the lowest shelf isn't heated by the lights, but everything above them is. There are also three different seed start times--1 flat of petunias in February, 2 flats of salvia on March first, and then everything else March 15th. So that lowest shelf can be inhabited by the already-sprouted petunias and one flat of the already-sprouted salvia.

As long as your temperature doesn't much exceed 85, you're fine. Warmer will encourage fungal sprout, which will lead to damp-off fungal issues.

Post-sprout, keep the plants cooler for stronger, bushier growth over lanky, weak growth caused in warmer temperatures. High light also encourages stronger growth. A bit of breeze is also good; I'll set up a fan to parse the sprouts for an hour or two a day.

Yours aren't going to spend long in the sprout/growth phase since your last frost date is coming up fast. So you'll have fewer problems.

I'm sure you know, but others don't. Harden off the plants by putting them out in shade for a day or two, then some sun, then sun (and bring them in at night to protect them from cooler temperatures). Then lastly, plant where they're going. Otherwise they tend to burn out--plants get sunburn too, and need to develop the pigments to protect themselves, just as your skin does.

[Michael Wise]

In the little seed starting kit I bought, there are 25 seed starting pellets.

I can only assume that they won't all germinate at the same time.

When do I put them under the light? First germination? Majority germination?

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[MorpheusPA]

Majority germination, as light isn't required during the germination process for tomatoes. Could be day 5, could be day 10. Depends on the seeds, temperature, oxygen, moisture, and whether you sing to them.

Some may not germinate. Don't be afraid to reseed them even if they're not being heated at that time--it'll still probably work, just move a little slower.

One minor word of warning--DON'T use too much water. It takes about a tenth what you think it does, and drenching the soil doesn't do good things. But never let it go dry, either.

[Michael Wise]

Germination, day 4!

http://i424.photobucket.com/albums/pp32 ... e3e5e2.jpg
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5 of 25 have a little green showing. There are a few more that look like they have a little bump in them.

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[MorpheusPA]

You got babies! Whatever you're doing, keep it up...

I currently have 1 of 40 petunias on day 4. Since day 7 to 10 is normal, that's actually not bad.

[Michael Wise]

Man! Now I can count 12! They're waking up!

I will probably put them under the light tomorrow.

[MorpheusPA]

At two per hour you should have tomatoes by Sunday.

[Michael Wise]

Ended up with 21 at closing time today.

I planted 2 seeds per pellet, and am already seeing some doubles. When should I cull?

I've read that the lights need to be inches from the leaves. Do these pics look close enough to the bulbs? I can get closer if needed.

The timer is set, and they will start getting light tonight.

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[Michael Wise]

Also, I remove the clear lid now that they are sprouted, right?

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[MorpheusPA]

Remove the lid; the babies need air.

The lights look great to me--within four inches is just fine, this seems a lot closer.

[MorpheusPA]

I planted 2 seeds per pellet, and am already seeing some doubles. When should I cull?

Forgot to answer this, sorry! Cull when the first true leaves show (not the seedling leaves, which are the first ones out and usually roundish and kind of basic looking), using a cuticle scissors to clip the weaker sprout(s) off at the base.

[Michael Wise]

Thanks for all the help, Morph.

Here is today.

http://i424.photobucket.com/albums/pp32 ... e7fe82.jpg

I promise I won't fill up the servers with daily pics that all look the same.

It looks like both seeds germinated in each pellet. I do have one pellet with one seedling, but another with three. Think I know what happened there.

[MorpheusPA]

What, we like pics. Besides, it's not our pic server.

So you got close to 100% germination, which is fantastic! I'm presuming you've either got a huge tomato garden or are planning on giving some of the babies away.

[Michael Wise]

YES! Lots of give aways!

I haven't decided how many cherry vs. big boys I'll plant.

I've got room for that many, but don't want to overwhelm myself with a full on tomato farm.

And I'm giving myself a little buffer zone for accidentally murdering some of these plants with inexperience. We'll call those the "learning curve".

[MorpheusPA]

I noticed that one cherry tomato plant adequately served our needs for the season. Three large tomato plants did the same.

Actually, I was feeding cherry tomatoes to the local wildlife, including one incredibly fat chipmunk who eventually just lay atop the wooden wall, basking in the sun, his hugely obese fat rolls hanging over the side.

Hopefully you can can, freeze, dry, or otherwise preserve them.

[Michael Wise]

These things are growing like crazy!

47 of 50 seeds germinated.

Now my new question.

I picked up a few of the pellets tonight when checking if I needed to water or not. Every pellet had a root or two growing out the bottom.

Do I need to go ahead and put them in bigger pots?

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